


Two Elves in a Blanket

by Svartalfhild



Category: Pillars of Eternity
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-18
Updated: 2017-02-18
Packaged: 2018-09-25 08:43:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,352
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9811763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Svartalfhild/pseuds/Svartalfhild
Summary: The blizzard that catches the Watcher and her friends on the way to Stalwart is a brutal one, but she and Aloth find comfort in each other.





	

“Lann, we must stop and rest. My knees have gone completely numb and my stomach has surely begun to eat itself,” Pallegina complained, calling out to the Watcher, who was not nearly so affected by the bitter cold of their snowy surroundings. Lann looked back at the others with an expression of deep concern. She could see that each of her friends, save Sagani and Itumaak, was showing quite visible signs of exhaustion.

“Of course.” She stopped and set down her gear, the others immediately following suit with audible relief. “Before we set up our tent, we should dig an alcove into this snowbank. It will be warmer.”

“I was just about to suggest the same,” Sagani commented with a smile Lann knew to be a show of the mutual respect they had for each other's homelands.

As the others unfurled the tent, Lann and Sagani, with the help of the little frost wurm Rhewen and Itumaak, carved out an alcove and started a fire. The tent did much to further shield them from the biting wind, but it was still horribly cold. They crowded close to the fire and passed around skewers for pieces of the fish and vegetables that Edér had been keeping in his pack.

“If I give some to Itumaak, will he let me pet him?” the warrior inquired.

“Maybe,” Sagani chuckled. This was clearly good enough for Edér, because he immediately offered a bite to the white fox, who eagerly gobbled it up. To the surprise of all, Itumaak didn't object to Edér running a big hand along the beast's ivory coat. “Huh, I suppose you've earned his trust.”

“Food is a great motivator,” Kana commented with a deep laugh. How he could be so chipper in such weather was a mystery to all. Aloth, Lann noted, had been decidedly silent this entire time, more so than usual. Despite the situation, he had given no witty remarks.

“Are you alright?” she leaned over to ask him softly.

“F-Fine, thank you,” he replied, his normally smooth voice trembling and his teeth chattering as he spoke, which made it quite obvious that he was, in fact, not alright. One would think he'd know better than to try to hide from a cipher, but old habits evidently died hard.

“Come here.” Lann lifted her fur blanket, offering up the space beside her. Aloth's eyes widened slightly at this.

“You n-needn't make yourself uncomfortable for my s-sake.” She was taken aback by this comment. Was he still torturing himself over his connection to the Leaden Key? So much so that he'd convinced himself that she secretly hated him? Well, she would have none of it.

“I wouldn't be uncomfortable, Aloth. Far from it.”

Upon hearing this, he seemed to deliberate with himself for a long moment. Lann continued to look at him with a soft expression, hoping his need to be warm would overcome his self-doubt and skewed sense of propriety.

“Very well,” he eventually muttered, drawing close to her and allowing her to put and arm around him so that they were both totally wrapped in her blanket. He was like an icicle at first, but after a few moments, he relaxed and regained much of his meager body heat.

“Us elven twigs need to stick together,” Lann joked. “We aren't hearths like Edér and his big, muscly, human self.”

“You're Glamfellen, though. You have an unfair advantage,” Aloth countered with a friendly elbow nudge.

“That's true, but I'm not naturally very warm. I can just ignore the cold longer. I can be warm and comfortable beside you, though.”

At this, Kana nearly spit out his sip from the mug of ale that Sagani had just handed him. Edér laughed and Aloth blushed an interesting shade of pink.

“Is that a flirtation I just heard from your mouth, Watcher?” Pallegina asked, sounding unusually amused.

“It's only a flirtation if Aloth chooses to see it that way,” Lann replied cryptically, turning the attention of the others back to Aloth. He gave a harried shrug and Edér chuckled again, but they mercifully dropped the subject, seeing that neither Lann nor Aloth would take to such teasing well. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean-” Lann whispered once the others had looked away, but Aloth cut off her apology.

“It's no matter,” he assured her with a light tone. “You're my friend, Lann, and I will always enjoy your company, close or otherwise.”

For a moment, the young cipher wondered if perhaps he meant something more by that, but she reminded herself that people didn't generally find strange, doomed women attractive, especially not nobles with legacies to think about and all that. She was kidding herself.

As she gazed into the fire, her thoughts dwelled further on her situation. She didn't understand why they stayed with her, all these amazing people. Most of them no longer had need of her and had every reason to leave her and her troubles in the dust, yet they remained. If by some miracle they had come to care for her, then they were still getting a bad deal. They would have to watch her slowly go mad.

“Lann? Are you alright?” Aloth's voice broke through her grim thoughts and she looked over him to see deep concern in this blue eyes. She couldn't bring herself to say anything, not least because she couldn't think of the right words. “I'm worried about you. You've been restless in your sleep and you've been having more and more vacant moments.” There was a particular gentleness to his voice then and Lann felt strangely exposed under his gaze. She briefly wondered if this was how people felt when she looked at them.

“I'm...” she began, intending to say that she was fine, but she couldn't bear to lie to him, especially when she knew that he'd see right through it. “I'm feeling the weight of destiny on my shoulders, a destiny that I've dragged all of you into.” At this, Lann felt a hand at her back, offering a comforting pressure.

“We know the risks; we're here for you of our own volition. Or at least I am. I cannot speak for the intent of the others.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because you've done more for me than anyone and I care about you. If there is anything that can drive me to heroic action, it is the thought of you having to face your fate alone.”

Lann felt a hard tug at her heartstrings. She had never expected to hear such impassioned words from Aloth, a man noted for his aristocratic sarcasm and his preference to avoid conflict. On top of that, he had directly admitted to caring about her. It was all a bit of a culture shock. She was from a village in the White that Wends where being so direct and open in one's feelings was unusual and even rather frowned upon.

“Thank you, Aloth. That means a great deal to me,” the Watcher murmured, her pale cheeks burning as she looked at him again. The intensity in his eyes had grown and she had suddenly become hyperaware of how close they were to each other. Thoughts of kissing him filled her head as she noticed that he was really quite handsome. A jolt of terror went down her spine at the notion and she immediately suppressed those thoughts. It was not the time or place for such things.

Instead of closing the distance to his lips, she diverted to resting her head on his shoulder. He smelled of ink and pine and the velum of his grimoire. It was oddly comforting.

“Anything you require, Lann. Just say the word,” Aloth whispered, moving his hand to her waist to pull her closer and rest his cheek on the top of her head. Fortunately, the others were too occupied with bickering over who would get the last potato to pay attention to this.

Now warm and content, the two elves soon fell asleep as they were, peaceful despite the raging blizzard outside and the challenges ahead of them.

 


End file.
